August has been a very busy month for me personally and professionally. I wanted to write a few more blog entries but simply did not have time.
President Obama is drumming for war in Syria. Of course he won't use the term 'war'. But his plans for military action in response to the use of chemical weapons is problematic at best, and dangerous at worst. :Let's consider the following:
1. Claiming to want to hamper Al Asaad's chemical weapons capability, Obama claims there will be no boots on the ground. This is a reference to no need for an invasion force such as in Iraq. However, the advance notice he gave to Al Asaad have provided the Syrians ample time to relocate the stockpile, move human shields into harm's way, and take other evasive measures.
2. Secretary of State John Kerry has informed the Syrians it would be a "very small" military action. Whoa now. That has some scary consequences implied, no?
3. Members of both the administration and the Pentagon have leaked specific target details. When was the last time a military was successful in telling the enemy which targets they were working against?
4. Politically speaking, this action is problematic for Obama at home. The citizens are not interested in another military action. They've seen long, protracted military actions which end up being very costly, both in human terms and and financial.
5. After having his Secretary of State called a liar by Russian President Putin, Obama goes to Russia for already planned meetings, and poses for photos with Putin, shaking his hand and smiling. There's supporting the chain of command for you.
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